Fantastically RENT
by Elephantian
Summary: Roger Davis and Sue and Johnny Storm are cousins? Uh oh... [RENT Fantastic 4 crossover]
1. Roger in Discovery on the Front Page

**Okay, a few things. One, this takes place in modern-day (2006). Just pretend Roger and Mark and everybody is the age they are in RENT, only it's 2006, not 1989. Also, this story will be told through Roger and Johnny's point of view (it'll switch off every chapter). Enjoy!**

**Roger**

Hands in my pockets, I strolled down the crowded streets of New York City. For once, I wasn't in the East Village, but in tourist NYC. And as if to prove any doubters wrong, pudgy people in khaki shorts and 'I Heart NY' t-shirts with expensive cameras dangling from their necks took up most of the space on the forever-busy sidewalk.

I hummed a new tune under my breath, the lyrics forming in my head.

"Crap," I muttered, "All shit."

I quickly erased both the music and words from my brain. I was really lacking inspiration since _Your Eyes_. Not to say it wasn't great, but it hadn't gotten me anywhere. Mimi kept saying I should send it in to radios and record companies, but I always dismissed her ideas. _Your Eyes_ special- I didn't want every lovesick teenager singing it to his girlfriend at midnight, waiting under her window as she gazed down at him lovingly. Especially not some snot-nosed, upper class snobs.

I sighed and looked wearily at some of the high-class newspapers being sold in those little plastic boxes.

_'WAR IN IRAQ CONTINUES'_

That was old news.

_'ANGELINA JOLIE AND BRAD PITT WELCOME BABY SHILOH'_

I really didn't give a damn.

_'FANTASTIC FOUR SAVE LIVES ON BRIDGE'_

Fantastic Four? I'd never heard of them before. I stooped down to get a better look at the front page of the paper to see if I could learn more.

I was only met with a picture of four people- probably the Fantastic Four. There was an orange rock thing, which the caption said was Ben Grimm. Then there was some guy with graying sides, Reed Richards apparently. However, the next two names caught my attention. Sue Storm and Johnny Storm. And the faces were familiar too.

"No way," I mumbled, my eyes widening, "It _can't_ be them!"

I fumbled through my pockets and found a quarter. I quickly inserted it into the machine and pulled out my paper.

I unfurled my new possession and quickly scanned the first article.

'The Fantastic Four were revealed today. After encountering a storm in space while visiting the Von Doom space station, these four scientists and astronauts' DNA was genetically mutated. Leader Reed Richards can stretch any part of his anatomy. Longtime friend of Richards, Benjamin Grimm, was super strength. Susan Storm has the ability to put up 'force fields' and turn invisible while little brother Jonathon can engulf his body with flames. Continued on C3.'

I didn't have to read the rest of the article- I'd found what I was looking for.

"I can't believe it's really them," I said, rolling up the paper and dashing back to the loft. I had to share this with someone, and the first person that came to mind was Mark. That or Mimi, but she was working.

I wove my way through the throngs of people and eventually made it back to the loft. I ran up the stairs and burst in the door, panting for breath.

_Note to self: Running in ninety-degree weather- bad._

Mark watched me through worried eyes as I staggered over to the sink and took a long sip of metallic-tasting, lukewarm water from the faucet, the liquid making me cool down some.

I wiped the sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand before taking the newspaper out of my pocket and tossing it to Mark.

"Read the first article," I instructed before he could get a word in, "You don't have to read the whole thing, just what's on the first page."

Mark sighed in an I-don't-really-have-any-other-choice kind of way and his blue orbs quickly scanned the few lines on the page.

"So?" he asked, looking up at me when he was finished, "That's cool, but what's the big deal?"

A huge grin taking over my face, I pointed to the Strom siblings in the picture. "Those two are what the big deal is all about. Sue and Johnny are my cousins. We used to be inseparable, but shit happened and I haven't seen or heard from them since before I moved here."

Mark nodded, a solemn look on his face. He studied the faces on the page with great intensity. "That Johnny guy _does_ look a little like you." He finally mused aloud.

I bobbed my head up-and-down excitedly before snatching the front section of the paper away while discarding the rest and giving it a long, hard stare. "Johnny and Sue," I said to myself, "What I'd give to talk to them again."

"Then why don't you?" Mark asked, flipping through the remainder of the paper, "It says here that the four currently live in the penthouse at the Baxter Building. That's in the city. Quite a distance from here, true, but we're used to junk like that."

"Good idea Mark," I said with sarcasm sewn thickly in my voice, "I can just camp out in front of their building like the other _hundred_ people pictured here!" –I pointed to the picture adjacent the remainder of the article– "I'm sure tons of people are claiming to be related just to see one of them. They're like celebrities now Mark!"

Mark rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Don't you have something to prove it?" he asked, "A picture maybe? A nickname?"

A nickname? I slapped my forehead. Of course! Johnny and I had shared our deal of nicknames 'back in the day'.

"Mark, you're a genius!" I declared before running out the door.


	2. Johnny in Body Parts on Ebay

**There are a few things I need to say about this story. One: for the record, Roger has already gone to Santa Fe and Mimi already had her near-death experience. However, the Fantastic 4 have just been found out by the press because of what happened at the bridge. So none of the stuff in the movie after that happens, unless I put it in. Two: After a few chapters, if not that many people are reading this, I'll put it in the Fantastic 4 page, not RENT. So if you're looking for it under RENT and it's not there, check Fantastic 4. Enjoy! **

**Johnny**

I sighed and ducked through the crowds towards the Baxter Building, hot on the heels of Ben. We'd gone out only to get some groceries (which he was carrying), but we ended up being mobbed by 'fans'. Not that I didn't like the attention, but Ben had been a real ass at the store and it put me in a sour mood.

"Johnny, you're _so_ handsome!" I heard one girl coo.

"Johnny I love you!" another called out.

I heard more feminine voices shout wild things like that, but one really caught my attention.

"Johnny, wait!" a masculine voice shouted, cutting through the higher voices like a knife.

I groaned and picked up the pace. Guys? I wasn't into guys!

I continued walking on, trying to lose the voice.

"Johnny, wait up!" it called again, but I chose to ignore it and the slight pitch of desperation coming from it.

I quickened my pace, keeping an eye on Ben as he pushed his way through the people.

"God damn it Typh," the voice said again roughly, "Why can't you ever listen to me?"

I stopped dead in my tracks. Typh? Childhood memories rushed at me as I recalled the last, and only, person who'd ever used that nickname on me. It was short for typhoon, because I was nothing short of one in energy and chaos. But the only person who ever called me that was…

"Roger?" I questioned, turning around slowly.

A man my age with a familiar smirk and even more familiar green eyes stared at me. "About time." He said, crossing his arms over his chest.

I smiled widely. It was Roger alright; his attitude hadn't changed a bit.

"Well, well, well," I said, walking up to him with my chest jutted out cockily, my bad mood disappearing, "If it isn't Roger Davis, a.k.a. Cyclone, a.k.a. Cyc, my childhood twin and best friend."

"Is there any other?" Roger asked, that same, dangerous smirk on his face.

My lips formed into a mirroring smirk and I stalked over to him and gave him a friendly side-hug (hey, I had to protect my reputation! Johnny Storm dug girls, not guys). "How's it going Cyc?"

"I should be asking you the same question Mr. Human Torch." Roger said.

Human Torch? That was pretty catchy actually. I figured I'd use it as my 'hero' name if Reed ever let me out of the house again.

"Eh, no complaints," I said casually, shrugging a bit.

Roger laughed as a throng of fan girls ran towards me. "I can see that," he said, obviously growing nervous as they grew closer.

"Come on," I mumbled, "Let's get out of here before we're killed and they sell our body parts on Ebay."

Roger nodded and I grabbed his wrist harshly and I could see him wince.

"You got a fever, Flame?" he questioned as I pulled him straight through the crowd towards the Baxter Building, my eyes scanning the crowd for Ben, who had disappeared out of sight.

"Yes and no," I answered, maneuvering my way through the crowd and trying to focus on cooling myself down as to not severely burn my cousin.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Roger angrily, biting his lip as my temperature rose along with my temper.

"Just give me a minute to explain!" I snapped, my mind trying to comprehend the next move I was going to make as the shortest and seemingly only escape to the Baxter Building closed.

Roger looked at me oddly, but remained silent.

I dragged Roger around for a while so it seemed like I knew what I was doing, but I ended up getting terribly lost. I hesitated for a moment, taking in the new surroundings of what I thought was the Lower East Village.

"So where's the Baxter Building?" he asked cockily.

"Up your ass." I replied without missing a beat.

"How mature of you," he mumbled, "Admit it Typh, you're lost."

"Am not!" I snapped.

"You are," Roger said, "I should know. Now listen, I know exactly how to get from here to the Baxter Building. I'll help you out if you _let go of my fucking arm!_"

I dropped Roger's hand like it was infected with a deadly virus and he instantly brought it to his chest and hugged it tightly, probably to stop the pain. I bit my lip when I saw the handprint-shaped burn on his skin.

"Sorry about that," I said softly.

"It's fine," Roger said, "Now come on!"

With that he grabbed my arm, the leather protecting his hand, and whisked me along various streets and through alleys until we finally reached the Baxter Building.

I smiled, relieved that I was finally out of _that_ mess, but it was quickly replaced by a frown. I groaned, remembering that I wasn't even supposed to be out of the house and as soon as I returned I'd be inmate number four again.

"Welcome to hell," I grumbled before leading Roger inside.


	3. Roger in Mrs Pinwell the Field Mouse

**Okay, next chapter will be posted under Fantastic 4, just to see the response I'd get there. And I'd like to thank my four kind reviewers. This is dedicated to you! So a special thanks to freedomfighter82, Passionate Fire, mindreader208, and ModernBohemianMuse. You guys rock! And sorry for the long wait! I tried to get this posted earlier, but fanfics wouldn't work. Whoever can guess the book Roger is talking about gets the next chapter dedicated to them. Oh, and if it wasn't out when Johnny, Sue, and Roger were kids I'm sorry. But I have one book in mind, so try and guess! Anyway, enjoy! **

**Roger**

Johnny led me to a very fancy looking elevator. As the box rushed towards the penthouse, I felt my stomach go queasy. I hadn't been in a motorized _anything_ in years- no planes, no cars, and no elevators. I clutched my stomach tenderly, trying to avoid Johnny's confused gaze. No normal person got elevator-sick, but living in a shitty loft for years on end without food, heat, or air conditioning can do that to a person.

We finally neared the top floor and Johnny motioned for me to be quiet. I nodded, smiling as I noticed the all-to-familiar, mischievous glint in his eye. Johnny grinned and turned back to the elevator door, which was opening at that very moment. He carefully tiptoed out and motioned for me to follow. I imitated his cautious tactics and followed him to a slightly opened door. I could hear people arguing within.

"I didn't lose him!" a gruff voice insisted.

"Then where is he?" a feminine voice asked, which I immediately recognized as Sue's.

"I don't know!" the gruff voice said again, "He was right behind me one second, and the next he was gone! It 'serves the little runt right. He's prolly bleedin' to death in some godforsaken alley. If Hothead had only listened…"

I heard a sob from Sue and a kinder, softer, masculine voice said, "Now look what you've done. Oh, come on Sue, I'm sure Johnny's okay. It is, after all, Johnny we're talking about."

"Yeah Sue," the other voice said, "I didn't mean it like that. You know Johnny- Mr. Cocky himself."

"I guess you're right," I heard Sue said hesitantly, her voice wavering, "I shouldn't have let him go. But he was so desperate to get out of the house and I felt bad that he had to stay locked up…"

Sue trailed off and sniffled.

"I hope he's alright," she added softly.

"I'm sure he is," the kinder voice said, "Johnny's been in a lot worse."

"Well, he ain't gonna be okay when I get my hands on him," the rough voice grumbled, "That little punk's got a lot of explaining to do…"

Johnny motioned for me to stay where I was and before I could respond he burst in the door, interrupting the voice. "Explain about what?" he asked cockily, "The plastic surgery bill? I'm telling ya Ben, we did the best we could."

"Johnny!" three voices yelled at once, one relieved, one annoyed, and one furious.

"I'm gonna kill ya!" the deep voice yelled and the floor shook as I heard his footsteps pound towards Typh.

I could imagine Johnny's devious grin as he said, "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"Why not?" the voice demanded.

"Because then I wouldn't be able to introduce you to our guest."

The rumbling stopped suddenly. "What guest?"

"Sue knows who it is," Johnny hinted, "Well, she doesn't know right now, but she'll know when I introduce him."

I decided to do a little mind-boggling of my own. Racking my brain, I remembered Sue's childhood, imaginary friend, Mrs. Pinwell. Mustering up my highest, most feminine sounding voice, I squeaked, "Why Susan darling, it's me, Mrs. Pinwell. Don't you remember me deary?"

The effect was amazing. My only regret was that I didn't get to see her face.

"Reed!" she shrieked, "We can't live here anymore! This place is haunted!"

Trying to contain my laughter, I spoke again. "Susie dear, I'm not a ghost! I'm a field mouse, remember? Like in that book you used to force read your dear brother and cousin. Dreadful book if I do say so myself."

"You never said that before," Sue said softly. I couldn't believe she was buying this, but I wasn't about to find out if she wasn't.

"You were but a young one way back when," I said, "I didn't want to hurt your delicate feelings. But you're a woman now and need to know the truth. Furthermore, I do believe you should give all your worldly possessions to dear Jonathon and Roger."

That blew it.

"Roger Davis!" Sue yelled angrily, "If you're there when I come out of this room I will personally strangle you!"

An interesting idea popped into my head as the door began to open. In a flash, all of my weight was pushed up against the door. Though not much because of the lack of food, I was able to keep the door shut.

"What the heck is going on?" Sue demanded, banging on the door.

"You can't strangle me if you don't exit the room," I answered simply.

The banging stopped. "So it's really you, Roger?"

"The one and only."

"Good, then I won't feel bad doing this. Ben!"

Before I know what has happened, I flew against the wall and crashed painfully to the ground, the white door in splintered shreds all around me.

"What the hell was that for?" I asked, wiping dust off my shirt and out of my hair.

Sue walked over and gave me a hug. "For scaring me you dimwit." She answered, a small smile on her face as she tightened her grip around my thin frame.

"It's good to see you too, Sue."


	4. Johnny in Lessons on Jealousy

**Okay, every three chapters the story will go to the other page. So in three chapters, this story will move from the Fantastic 4 page to the RENT page, and visa versa. No one guessed the book I was talking about in the last chapter, so I'll give you guys until next update to guess. Anyway, enjoy! **

**Johnny**

"He can't stay here," Reed said sternly, glaring at Roger as Sue hugged him tightly.

"Why not?" I asked, "You jealous that Sue's giving him all the attention? Can Reed Richards really compete with someone as cool as Roger Davis? Get over her Stretchy."

Roger laughed and broke out of my sister's grasp to give me a high-five, whereas Reed continued to glare at the both of us.

"In all seriousness now, Reed," Sue said, "Why can't Roger stay?"

"Just look around Sue!" he nearly yelled, "Our DNA is mutated! We're…we're…we're _different_."

"I could've told you _that_." Sue complained.

"Hey, even _I_ could've told you that." I added, crossing my arms over my chest.

Ben fake gasped. "Quick, call in the press!" he yelled, "Flame boy has a brain!"

I grinded my teeth and glared at him. "Shut it Rocky,"

"Or what?" he asked, "You'll flame me to death?"

I could feel my temperature rising and apparently, everyone else could sense it.

"Johnny, calm down!" Sue instructed, "The last thing we need is the entire Baxter Building going up in flames."

I managed to calm myself down, but continued to glare at Ben.

"So why can't he stay?" I asked again, not taking my eyes off the human boulder.

"You've just demonstrated exactly why not, Johnny," Reed answered, "We don't know the extent of our, if you will, powers. Roger could get hurt if he stayed here, especially with the lab so close. His DNA could even begin to mutate if he's stayed in contact with us for too long in an enclosed area."

"That's stupid," I grumbled.

"No it's not," Reed protested, "I'm merely looking out for Roger's well being."

"Well don't," Roger snapped, catching everyone off guard as those were the first words he'd spoken in a while, "I have enough friends who do that already. I can take care of myself."

I looked from Roger to Reed and back again numerous times. "I think I've got it," I finally said, "Reed doesn't want Roger to stay because he's too cool. I mean, look at the guy! We have Reed- a smart guy, but come on, graying sides already and pretty dorky. And then we have Roger- tattoo, sweet hair (if I do say so myself), and a kick-ass attitude. Reed's just jealous."

"He wouldn't be the first person," Roger muttered, grinning.

"I'm not jealous," Reed insisted.

"If you weren't, you'd let me stay," Roger said, knowing he'd won the battle.

From the look on Reed's face, I could tell he knew he was stuck between a rock and a hard place. He could either kick Roger out, but face mockery from us for being jealous. Or he could let Roger stay, and threaten my cousin's well being.

Finally, Reed sighed and I could tell we'd won.

"Fine, he can stay," Reed relented, "But if the slightest thing starts to go wrong he's out of here."

Sue and Roger were smiling from ear to ear, and I'm sure I was doing the same. It was going to be just like old times.

"Here Roger," Reed said, "There's one more spare bedroom, at the end of the hall next to Johnny's. You can stay there."

"Roger, do you want me to come with you back home so you can get your stuff?" Sue asked.

"No!" Roger shouted, "I mean, no thanks. I've got it under control. Thanks for offering though. I think I'll go get my stuff right now, actually."

With that, he made his way out of the room to the elevator.

"I'll go warn the doorman that he's allowed in," Sue said before running after Roger.

Soon, I heard the elevator clank shut and begin to descend.

"Where _does_ he live anyway?" Ben asked.

"I…I don't know," I answered, "One day he just disappeared and I hadn't heard from him or seen him for years until today."

"Don't you think that's a little suspicious?" Reed asked, "You don't hear from him for years, but as soon as your picture turns up on the front page of the newspaper, he comes right back and moves in. How do you even know he's your cousin?"

"Roger and I are closer than brothers," I mumbled, feeling my temperature rise.

"Then why did he disappear?" Reed asked, "It sounds like he ditched you guys."

"That's it Stretch," I said, bursting into flames. I punched Reed straight in the jaw and his head flew across the room. Rubbing his jaw tenderly, his neck stretched down to its normal size.

"Cool it, Johnny," he advised.

"Not until you accept the facts!" I yelled, throwing a flame ball at him.

He melted so as to dodge it, and the metal table behind him went flying on impact.

Suddenly, a cold substance came in contact with me, and my flames were doused. I glared at Ben, who stood in the kitchen doorway triumphantly, a bucket of what I assumed once held water.

"You guys suck."

"I warned you," Reed said.

"I'm going out."

"You can't go out. Not until we know the extent of what's going on."

"I don't care," I said, "I'll be back."

"Well when you _do_ get back, Roger won't be here."

I turned around and glared at Reed. "And why the hell not?"

"Because I'll kick him out."

Reed's triumphant smirk made me want to vomit. It was sickeningly proud.

"You knew what you were doing when you hesitated like you did, didn't you?"

Reed nodded. "I knew something you cared about would keep you on some sort of leash. Dear cousin Roger turned out to be that something."

"Reed, you're too damn smart for your own good."


	5. Roger in Leaving Bohemia

**This chapter is dedicated to my good friend Caitlyn, because she bugged me to write it so much. Also, no one has guessed the book yet, so I'll say what it is next chapter. I'd also like to bring up the topic of typos. I try very hard to catch all of my spelling and grammatical errors, but I can't catch them all. _Please_ be patient with them. Anyway, you can tell what I mean most of the time. If you _can't_ understand what's meant, please simply say so in the review and leave an email address if you're reviewing anonymously so I can get back to you on that. Thanks! **

**Roger**

My hands in my pocket, I slowly walked down the street towards the loft. How was I going to break the news to everybody? How could I tell Mimi and Mark and everybody else I was walking out on them again?

And on top of that, I felt guilty for yelling at Sue. All she wanted to do was help me pack my stuff, but for some reason, I didn't want to fill in that time gap for them. I didn't want them to know about April and Mimi. About Mark and Collins and Angel. About Maureen and Joanne and Benny. About the drugs. About AIDS. About all of my old bands. I didn't want them to know about any of that.

"This is Roger Davis," I narrated, impersonating Mark to the best of my ability, "The man of two lives. A two-faced, split personality, double-life bastard. Yup, that's him. That's me."

I nodded in agreement with myself. I was a bastard, that was for sure. Only bastards ditched their poor, but loyal friends for rich and famous family. I was just a big a sellout as Benny.

Mark's words drifted back to me from New Years.

_"Friendship is thicker than blood," Mark said, a smile on his face._

_"That depends," I argued_

We had, in the end, agreed on Mark's statement, but I was right. It all depends. If you have cousins that have super powers and live in a penthouse then yeah, friendship isn't thicker than blood. At least not in my case.

I looked up and sighed. I'd arrived at the loft sooner than I'd hoped.

"Oh well," I mumbled to myself, ascending the long flight of stairs, "I might as well get this over with."

I finally reached the top and pulled open the loft door.

"Hello!" I called out, "Mark? Mimi? I'm home!"

I cautiously walked into the room and scanned the place. No one was in sight. I spied a note on the metal table and went to read it.

Roger- 

_Mimi and I went over to Collins place. He's stocked up on money from teaching gigs and we're going to go shopping. We're going to his house for dinner after with the rest of the crew, so we won't be back until late. Join us if you want._

_-Mark_

Good, that bought me some time. Now I didn't have to face them. Of course, I still had to tell them somehow.

I grinned when I spied Mark's camera. He must have forgotten it. Thankful I'd sat through Mark's 'How to Work a Camera 101' last summer, I quickly got the thing set up on a tripod and began to shoot.

"Hey Mark, Mimi, it's Roger, obviously. Mark knows what happened today, but I'll explain for Mimi. I found my cousins. We were so close as kids, but I left and haven't talked to them since before moving into the loft. But now I've found them, and I've been invited to move in. I'm taking it. I only came back to get my stuff. And to say goodbye. You know what, no. Screw goodbyes, I suck at 'em. Anyway, I'm going to miss all of you, I really am. Maybe I'll come visit sometime. And this doesn't mean I don't like you guys anymore. Mimi, you're still my number one girl and Mark, you're still my best friend. Collins, you're still my drinking buddy who's more intelligent than a sober me even after consuming a dangerous amount of alcohol. Maureen and Joanne, you guys still rock and please don't fight too much. Benny, well, Benny's still a sellout. I guess I'll see you all later sometime."

With that I got up and turned off the camera. Figuring Mark would get the hint, I put of the canvas and left the camera on the tripod. Just incase I put a little note saying 'watch this' on the camera.

I then made my way into my room and packed my suitcase. I didn't have much, and it was incredibly light. After grabbing my guitar, I looked around the loft one last time and then left.

It felt like Santa Fe all over again. That terrible feeling of guilt slowly sunk into my heart. Those people had taken care of me. They found me on the streets half dead and nursed me back to health. They had gotten me through April and withdrawal. They had been there for me, and I was leaving again.

But this was different, wasn't it?

With Santa Fe, I left because I couldn't handle it anymore. Now I was leaving because I had found a better opportunity. A door had opened for me, and I was grabbing at the chance. This move could be good for me. Anyway, now they didn't have to deal with me dying of AIDS.

The thought made me stop.

"Oh shit," I mumbled.

Normal people don't die so early. What would I tell Sue and Johnny and even Ben and Reed when my time came?

"Yeah, I've kinda had AIDS this entire time, but I didn't tell you."

They'd kill me before I could die myself.

"I'll get to that when the time comes," I reassured myself, continuing forward to the Baxter Building. To my new home.

"I found my song before I left," I said under my breath, "Now to find a new song in a new place. This may be the big break I've been looking for. The inspiration I've been longing to find."

The thought made me happy. Maybe leaving bohemia was for the best.


	6. Johnny in Cockiness and Arrogance

**I'm sorry if that last chapter was a bit weird, I promise everything will be straightened out in the next chapter, which includes Roger moving in with the Fantastic 4 and stuff like that. I know a lot of you aren't thrilled that Roger is keeping his past from Johnny and everybody, but it's part of the essential storyline and it will be sorted out by the end, so please be patient! **

**Johnny**

I snapped my fingers and watched in awe as a small flame shot up. As kids, Roger and I had enjoyed setting fire to things. Only small stuff, like leaves and grass and shit like that, because our parents, and Sue, would spazz if it was anything actually living was torched. We always thought that was funny, because grass and plants are living things, too. They do, after all, have all the characteristics of life. They grow and reproduce and all that other shit our science teacher talked about in freshman year.

I snapped twice and the flame died out before bursting up again. I smiled contently, watching it flicker and dance before my eyes. I'd always been fascinated with fire, as well as Roger, but he always seemed to have an easier time getting the match to burn, or getting the magnifying glass at just the right angle. While Roger could easily burn hole after hole in dead leaves with just a magnifying glass (he'd won the 'Pyro Award' back in eighth grade when the teacher taught us how to use magnifying glasses to burn stuff. He'd burnt his name in the leaf while others could barely manage holes. He was school famous for weeks), I could barely set flame to toilet paper doused in lighter fluid. I could only watch impatiently as Roger did all the flame work. Fire had never seemed to work for me.

I snapped my finger once more and the flame extinguished. A lot had changed since my 'fire-impaired' days. I was the fire. Well, kind of. Didn't some old guy in ancient Rome or Greece or something say 'Be one with something'? Ah, I don't know, I was never good at history. Too many dates to memorize. Even wars with those cool pictures of dead people all over the place bleeding their guts out were dampened by the boring, drawling voice of the teacher and the endless pages of notes.

I sighed and rolled over on my bed, getting restless. I didn't like being locked up in this stupid penthouse. It was like trying to keep Reed from doing his science junk- not that it shouldn't happen, it _couldn't_ happen. Well, it couldn't unless some outside force stopped it, like one of those Newton Laws. 'An object in motion will stay in motion unless stopped by some outside force'. Something like that.

Why did the old days with Roger keep coming up in my head? What was it about middle school and high school that seemed to be leering over me today?

"Ah, it's probably just a coincidence," I reassured myself, getting up and making my way to the kitchen.

I watched, confused, as Sue paced the kitchen, wringing her hands and mumbled nonsense under her breath.

"Hey Sue," I said, sitting down and watching her, "What's all the mumbo-jumbo, voodoo chanting about?"

She looked up from the floor and glared at me. "Nothing's wrong, Johnny."

"Of course," I said, giving her a skeptical look.

She sighed and sat down next to me. "I hate you, Johnny, I really do."

"What did I do _this_ time?" I asked, annoyed.

She looked at me with curious eyes. "You're just…_you_. You wouldn't get it unless you were someone else looking after you."

"What are the little voices inside your head telling you _this_ time, Susie?" I asked, smirking.

"Johnny!"

I hopped up and ran to my room. However, the knob wouldn't turn and I ran smack into the door.

"Ow," I mumbled, rubbing my head and glaring at my door, "What the hell was that all about?"

Sue bent down to help me and I watched with disgust as Reed exited my room.

"Sorry about that," he said, "I'm just installing a sprinkler system in all the rooms, incase you go haywire. Not to say you will, but I'd rather be safe than sorry."

I glared up at Reed. "Go stick your head up your ass," I mumbled before getting up and walking away.

However, a hand on the collar of my shirt stopped me. "Johnny,"

I turned around. It was Reed.

"What do you want?" I snapped.

"Just to talk," he said, "Before Roger comes and you're too cocky and arrogant to even listen to me anymore."

"Well, talk then," I said.

Reed opened his mouth to start, but the elevator clanked open instead.

"Hey hot head!" Ben grunted, "I picked up pretty boy here for ya!"

I turned and looked down the hall at a grumpy looked Ben, though that's how he always seemed to look, and a cheerful but subtly unsettled Roger.

"Ah, I'm feeling the cockiness and arrogance settling in," I said, closing my eyes and smirking, "They're coming off of Roger and seeping into my skin. Soon I will be too cocky and too arrogant to talk. It's reaching the core. It can't be much longer. Ding, ding, ding! There we are! Oh well Reed, a bit too late!"

Reed looked at me, appalled, as I went to help Roger with his stuff, which wasn't much.

"You still play guitar?" I asked, noticing the instrumental shape of one of his bags.

Roger grinned and nodded. "When have I _not_ played guitar?"

"You have a point."

"When do I not?"

"The dangerously high amount of self-absorbance is killing me," Reed said, gagging.

"If you're going to puke, don't do it on _me_!" Roger squealed girly, giving us the response we'd been hoping for.

"What have I done?" Reed groaned.


	7. Roger in A Sticky Predicament

**Okay, this chapter should take care of Roger moving away from the loft. There are a few references to his past, but none those parts should really make sense yet. Don't worry though, Roger's past will be revealed (eventually)! Enjoy! **

**Roger**

I yawned and arched my back, stretching after a nice, long sleep in a decent mattress. I'd forgotten what such a luxury was like after years in the loft and before that the hard pavement.

I got up and trudged into the kitchen, where I could hear people arguing.

"No Johnny," Reed nearly yelled, "You're not going out!"

"If you're going to keep me locked up at least give me something to _do_." Johnny complained.

"It's for your own good to stay put," Sue said, her voice significantly quieter than the other two.

"Then why can't either of you go out?" Johnny asked, "I can understand why you'd keep Rock-ass locked up, but why me?"

"Hey!" Ben said defensively, "At least I'm not a fire hazard!"

"Then why don't one of you two go get it?"

"Because none of us can leave here, Johnny," Reed said, "Is that so hard to understand?"

"What's going on?" I asked, cautiously entering the kitchen.

All four heads whipped around at the sound of my voice. Sue's legs, hands, and neck were invisible and Johnny had steam rising off of him, and I could see little flames shooting across his body. Things was definitely, pardon my pun, a heated argument.

"Did we wake you?" Sue asked, her fingers coming back into view.

I shook my head. "No," I answered truthfully.

"Roger can go and get it!" Johnny said, the steam slowing down, "He's normal and the press doesn't know about him. He should be able to get it no sweat!"

"What exactly do you want me to get?" I asked cautiously.

"Just some kind of video game system. X-box or Playstation 2 would be nice. Sue and Reed won't let me." Johnny answered.

"Fine." I said, causing all four of them to smile somewhat, "I'll go get it. No sweat off my back."

"Thanks Roger," Johnny said, "Here, I've been saving up."

He stuffed a wad of bills into my hand.

I nodded and headed back to my room and changed before heading out the door. I remembered seeing a video game store just a few blocks down when Johnny had gotten lost on the way back to the Baxter Building.

I was nearly there when an all-too-familiar voice sounded through the air.

"Roger!" I heard Collins yell, "Roger, wait up!"

I turned around, almost scared that he was going to start yelling at me. It didn't make matters better that Mark was with him.

"Hey Roger," Mark said, panting for breath a little bit, "We've been looking all over for you!"

"Yeah, we were expecting you for dinner," Collins said, "We actually managed to get a pretty decent meal. Mark thought you'd be here, especially after he got your video."

"You aren't mad?" I asked, a little frightened of the response I was going to get.

"I was a little," Mark admitted, "But then I realized it was all a joke. I mean, come on Roger. I knew you wouldn't do something like that after Santa Fe and all those months of searching for Mimi. It was like a big game of hide-and-seek."

"He figured we'd find you around the Baxter Building, since you said stuff about your cousins and all." Collins added.

Mark nodded. "And I was right. Come on Roger, the games over. You can come home now."

"But…" I began and both of their smiles fell.

"You weren't actually thinking of staying with them, where you?" Mark asked, fear seeping into his eyes.

I couldn't bring myself to say yes, but neither could I say no. I hadn't really thought about whether I was really going to desert my bohemian family or not.

"I…I…" I stammered.

Collins got very serious. "Listen Roger," he began, "You are going to come back with us and you're not going to complain. You saw you're blood, but you told me. You _told_ me, Roger. How could you think of going back? You saw them, and now it's over."

I nodded meekly. He was right. I _had_ told him about my past, and now I was beginning to hate my decision of ever going to find them.

"You're right," I whispered finally, "Let's go home."

"What about all your stuff?" Mark asked, "It was gone when I got back."

"It's with them," I said, "But I'm not going back."

"Your clothes," Collins started.

"I'll get a job and buy some more."

"Your _guitar_." Mark said.

"I'll buy a new one."

"But how?"

I stiffened up and glared down at Mark before lightening up. "Don't worry you're pretty little head over it." I said sweetly, pinching his cheeks, "Mommy will take care of it for you."

Mark slapped my hands away and laughed. "Don't do that again," he warned, "You sounded just like my aunt."

I grinned and stuffed my hands in my pockets. My stomach lurched when I felt the wad of bills Johnny had given me. If I wasn't going back, what the hell was I supposed to do with the money?

I could spend it, or I could wait and give it back to him. Well, if I wasn't going to go back…

"How about we go to the Life?" I proposed, "My treat."


	8. Johnny in Dodging The Man

**Sorry Roger was such a jerk in the last chapter. I promise he won't be like that the entire story. And sorry for the long wait! School's been a real drag. Anyway, here's Johnny's chapter! **

**Johnny**

"Where's Roger?" I asked.

Sue sighed before looking up from the cake batter she was mixing before giving me an exasperated glance. "I don't know, Johnny. You've been asking me that for the last hour!"

"I know," I mumbled, "Sue?"

"If you ask me where Roger is I'll staple your mouth shut."

"Do you have any staples?"

Sue paused for a moment. "No."

"Then do you know where Roger is?"

Sue gritted her teeth and glared at me. "Johnny!" she nearly yelled and threw a cake-batter-covered whisk at me.

It missed and hit Reed square in the head as he entered the kitchen.

"Ow," he grumbled, rubbing his head.

"Sorry," Susie apologized, "I was aiming for Johnny."

"Reed, do _you_ know where Roger is?" I asked.

"I can't say I do," Reed answered, returning the whisk to Sue, who continued stirring the batter.

I threw my hands in the air with frustration. "It doesn't take an hour to buy an X-box!" I complained.

"You need to be doused," Ben mused, walking, or rather stomping, into the kitchen.

"Ben's right," Reed said, "You're steaming again."

I forced myself to calm down. If there wasn't a Baxter Building where the hell was I going to play my X-box?

"Maybe we should go look for him," I proposed.

"Who? Pretty boy?" Ben asked.

"No, the boogeyman," I said sarcastically, "Of _course_ Roger!"

"He's not a dog," Reed said, "I'm sure he's fine on his own."

"But…but…" I stammered, "But…but…he's my dog – I mean friend! We have to go find him!"

"You are no leaving this building." Sue said, "So I don't know how you're going to find him."

I scowled and glared at my feet. I finally saw my best friend and then he goes and disappears on me again.

"What did I tell you?" Reed asked, "He ditched you, Johnny. He got what he wanted. Roger hasn't seen you in years. You showed up on the front page of the paper and he magically returns. You gave him a wad of money and told him to get something for you and now he's missing. That sounds pretty suspicious."

"Reed!" Sue whined as I glared at the older man, "How could you even say such a thing?"

"Think about it!" He said, "It makes sense."

"Roger is Roger," I said, "He wouldn't do that."

"He already has,"

Beads of fire shot across my skin and Sue and Ben looked worried about that. In a ball of fury, I threw a ball of flame at Reed and it hit him right in the chest, causing him to fly backwards into the wall.

He fell limply to the ground and got up slowly.

"Calm down, Johnny," he said with an even tone.

"Shut up, Reed!" I snapped, "Don't over analyze anything, you're head might explode! Not that it would be a problem seeing as there's nothing in there but hot air. You say you think things through. You say you're nice. Look at you! Just listen to yourself!"

Scowling, I stormed out of the kitchen and into the elevator. I was going to find Roger whether they wanted me to or not.

The doors banged open at the bottom floor and I rushed out of the Baxter Building, ignoring the stares I was getting.

"Is that him?" A woman whispered behind me.

I heard paper rustling before another feminine voice said, "Yeah, I think it is."

"Excuse me!" I heard yet another female voice say, "Johnny!"

Rolling my eyes, I stopped and turned around. "Yeah?" I questioned, flashing a bright smile.

Three teenaged girls giggled and one stepped forward and said, "Will you sign this for us?"

She pushed a black-and-white picture of me into my hands. "Our friend photoshopped it," she admitted, "She's a _huge_ fan and her birthday's tomorrow."

I smiled again. "Sure. What's her name?"

The girls giggled again and one said a name. I quickly jotted down a quick message and gave it back.

"Thanks!" the chorused before disappearing into the New York crowd.

I nodded and continued on. Soon, I found myself in the Lower East Village. I glanced around nervously, cautious of every person who looked like a drug dealer, which was quite a few.

"You look lost," a man with greasy, long hair, said, "I got the solution to all your problems right here." –he held up a little bag with white powder inside– "All it takes is a little money and all your problems will be gone."

"Um, no thanks," I said, backing away.

"C'mon, just try it," he urged.

Taking a deep breath I glared at him. "I said no," I grumbled and spit at his feet.

"Oh, you'll pay for that!" the man said, and I could see him digging a knife out of his pocket.

Letting out a little yelp, I began to run, the man right on my heels.

I rounded a corner and dove into a place called the Life Café. I hid under one of the tables and watched through the window as the man ran right by.

I was safe…for now.


End file.
